Hear Redder Unravel Minimal Beauty on ‘Border/lines’

Helsinki duo plots EP of the same name for August 19

Helsinki duo Redder are cut from the same cloth as contemporaries James Blake, Majical Cloudz, and the xx. All are artists who blend the electronic and the organic with an ear for negative space and an understanding of just how powerful it can sound once trapped. Frans Saraste and Vesa Hoikka are newcomers, but their gentle touch is already quite refined, as can be heard on the titular track from their Auguast 19 EP Border/lines. As the song begins, we immediately sense the depth of the room as organic sounds — keys and creaks and voice — get caught up in a slow, deliberate dance. “Oh take two steps back to the border, run to your corner,” coos Saraste, but “Border/lines” is much more welcoming than that, growing in scope as it draws the listener in. By the end, we reach a place that’s actually quite maximal, and the shift is glorious.